title: Photophysical properties of cyclometalated Pt(II) complexes: counterintuitive blue shift in emission with an expanded ligand π system.
abstract: A detailed examination was performed on photophysical properties of phosphorescent cyclometalated (C(^)N)Pt(O(^)O) complexes (ppy)Pt(dpm) (1), (ppy)Pt(acac) (1'), and (bzq)Pt(dpm) (2) and newly synthesized (dbq)Pt(dpm) (3) (C(^)N = 2-phenylpyridine (ppy), benzo[h]quinoline (bzq), dibenzo[f,h]quinoline (dbq); O(^)O = dipivolylmethanoate (dpm), acetylacetonate (acac)). Compounds 1, 1', 2, and 3 were further characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Structural changes brought about by cyclometalation were determined by comparison with X-ray data from model C(^)N ligand precursors. The compounds emit from metal-perturbed, ligand-centered triplet states (E(0-0) = 479 nm, 1; E(0-0) = 495 nm, 2; E(0-0) = 470 nm, 3) with disparate radiative rate constants (kr = 1.4 × 10(5) s(-1), 1; kr = 0.10 × 10(5) s(-1), 2; kr = 2.6 × 10(5) s(-1), 3). Zero-field splittings of the triplet states (ΔE(III-I) = 11.5 cm(-1), 1'; ΔE(III-I) < 2 cm(-1), 2; ΔE(III-I) = 46.5 cm(-1), 3) were determined using high resolution spectra recorded in Shpol'skii matrices. The fact that the E0-0 energies do not correspond to the extent of π-conjugation in the aromatic C(^)N ligand is rationalized on the basis of structural distortions that occur upon cyclometalation using data from single crystal X-ray analyses of the complexes and ligand precursors along with the triplet state properties evaluated using theoretical calculations. The wide variation in the radiative rate constants and zero-field splittings is also explained on the basis of how changes in the electronic spin density in the C(^)N ligands in the triplet state alter the spin-orbit coupling in the complexes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California , Los Angeles, California 90089, United States.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bossi
authors.forename: Andreas F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Rausch
authors.forename: Markus J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Leitl
authors.forename: Rafał
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Czerwieniec
authors.forename: Matthew T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Whited
authors.forename: Peter I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Djurovich
authors.forename: Hartmut
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yersin
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Thompson